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The Industrial Revolution, which took place from the 18th to 19th centuries,
was a period during which predominantly agrarian, rural societies in Europe
and America became industrial and urban. Prior to the Industrial Revolution,
which began in Britain in the late 1700s, manufacturing was often done in
peoples homes, using hand tools or basic machines. Industrialization marked
a shift to powered, special-purpose machinery, factories and mass production.
The iron and textile industries, along with the development of the steam
engine, played central roles in the Industrial Revolution, which also saw
improved systems of transportation, communication and banking. While
industrialization brought about an increased volume and variety of
manufactured goods and an improved standard of living for some, it also
resulted in often grim employment and living conditions for the poor and
working classes
Developments in the iron industry also played a central role in the Industrial
Revolution. In the early 18th century, Englishman Abraham Darby (1678-
1717) discovered a cheaper, easier method to produce cast iron, using a
coke-fueled (as opposed to charcoal-fired) furnace. In the 1850s, British
engineer Henry Bessemer (1813-1898) developed the first inexpensive
process for mass-producing steel. Both iron and steel became essential
materials, used to make everything from appliances, tools and machines, to
ships, buildings and infrastructure.